Challenges
Guardian Alarm prides itself on delivering world-class security services. From investing in state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, to rigorously training its technicians and installers, Guardian does everything possible to ensure customers’ lives and properties are protected. The company was challenged, however, by issues beyond its control, such as third-party network downtime and sunsetting technologies.
“Relying on third-party networks is risky,” said Tom Furlong, Operations Manager at Guardian. “When our cellular and alarm public service providers have outages— which happens more frequently than you’d think—all we can do is wait for them to come back online. In the meantime, our customers are without service.”
Service also gets disrupted when Guardian has to upgrade cellular radios in the field to accommodate technology changes. When the cell provider moves from 2G to 4G, and when customers stop using traditional plain old telephone service (POTS). “It seems we’re continually going from one conversion process to the next. POTS lines are heading for sunset, yet some customers still want alarms connected to phone lines and, sooner than later, we’ll need to change them out. Changes like these are a burden for customers and, with all the labor involved, they affect Guardian’s profitability,” Furlong said.
The company’s bottom line is also impacted by fees Guardian pays the cellular provider every month for using the network. “We’d prefer to keep that revenue for ourselves,” Furlong added.
Solution
In 2006, when Guardian learned their cell provider’s analog network would soon be shutting down, the company embarked on a conversion project. Instead of replacing all installed analog transmitters with digital cellular radios, Guardian invested in a solution from
AES Corporation that provides the industry’s only long-range, operator-owned and controlled private mesh alarm communications technology.
“Sunsetting periods are an ideal time to switch to
AES-IntelliNet technology,” Furlong noted. “Instead of being tied to a third-party vendor’s infrastructure, AES frees you to be master of your own destiny.”
Guardian has been steadily replacing installed GSM radios with the award-winning AES-IntelliNet mesh radio technology for burglary alarm monitoring and will soon be adding AES fire radios to the network. AES-IntelliNet technology is proven for superior reliability and is UL listed and NFPA compliant. Multiple paths provide redundancy to make sure all critical event data gets through to the central station. The AES-IntelliNet network’s self-healing capability allows installed units to intuitively know when and where paths can be realigned to transmit data, while self-routing communications help the smart transceivers find the fastest routes.
“We chose AES for its technology, but we’ve been just as happy with its team. AES doesn’t just sell products. They fully support their dealers. It’s been a very positive partnership,” Furlong said.
Results
Deliver consistently reliable alarm communication services
AES’ patented mesh radio technology enables Guardian to ensure superior reliability. “With AES, we are in complete control of our communications network. Customers aren’t subject to the lost calls, hacking issues or outages that cellular subscribers have to deal with,” Furlong explained. Moreover, because AES’ products don’t sunset, Guardian doesn’t have to inconvenience customers. According to Furlong, “Unlike cellular technology, AES’ solution doesn’t require us to constantly upgrade customer equipment. When you put an AES radio in place, it will continue to work no matter what. No changes necessary.”
Preserve RMR and boost profitability
“One of AES’ most attractive aspects is that we get to keep all our recurring monthly revenue. There are no network fees,” Furlong said. Guardian also saves money by not having to send personnel to customer sites for upgrades. “Between savings on truck rolls and RMC, AES definitely helps us boost profitability. And the more customers we put on the AES network, the more profitable we become,” Furlong added.
Support business expansion
Guardian’s business continues to grow steadily, through acquisitions and organically. AES Corporation facilitates this expansion by making it financially attractive and easy to add customers to the network. AES-IntelliNet networks scale up to thousands of nodes over large geographic areas, reaching customers that are out of range for other technologies.